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bioRxiv · 10.64898/2026.05.28.728435

An Integrative Taste Receptor Links pH and Amino Acids to Sugar Sensing in Bemisia tabaci

Aidlin Harari, O.·Yakir, E.·Wintraube, D.·Tadmor, E.·Juravel, K.·Levi, K.·Glik, H.·Bohbot, J. D.·Morin, S.·Malka, O.
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Abstract

Phloem-feeding insects execute complex behavioral decisions to secure essential nutrients from a diet characterized by nitrogen scarcity and severe osmotic pressure due to high sucrose concentrations. We investigated the sensory mechanisms underlying these decisions in the phloem-feeding whitefly Bemisia tabaci. We demonstrate that the sweet taste receptor BtabGR1, expressed in mouthpart and gut tissues, integrates three environmental chemical cues: sucrose concentration, the presence of the essential amino acid arginine, and pH values. Arginine is a pH-dependent positive modulator of sucrose sensing, increasing receptor responses nearly fourfold under apoplast-like conditions and more than doubling the receptor responses in the gut luminal environment. Insects show a strong feeding preference for arginine-containing diets in dual-choice bioassays, with markedly higher intake when arginine is present. RNAi-mediated silencing of BtabGR1 disrupt intake regulation, leading to increased honeydew excretion. These findings suggest a putative link between arginine and the BtabGR1 receptor in regulating both feeding-site evaluation and diet ingestion. Furthermore, the ability to integrate three distinct environmental cues makes BtabGR1 one of the most complex interdependent sensory systems described for a single insect chemoreceptor.

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Aidlin Harari, O., Yakir, E., Wintraube, D., Tadmor, E., Juravel, K., Levi, K., Glik, H., Bohbot, J. D., Morin, S., Malka, O.. 2026-06-01. An Integrative Taste Receptor Links pH and Amino Acids to Sugar Sensing in Bemisia tabaci. https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.05.28.728435

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